Just as the public sector leisure industry aspires to create a universal offer to put it at the forefront of the preventative health agenda, an existential crisis lurks in the shadows in the form of a reliance on fossil fuels to power our venues.
The potential saviour is Greater Manchester’s ambition to become carbon neutral by 2038.
Here, our Head of Business Operations, Jon Keating, looks at some of the solutions put in place by members of the GM Active collective that could help to turn ambition into reality, and argues the cost of losing facilities is too great to contemplate.
At GM Active we are committed to supporting the ambition of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to be carbon neutral by 2038. It is vital that we as GM Active play our part in making this happen, and therefore we have included it within our four-part We Move as One strategy, the fourth element of which says:
In light of that strategy, particularly its overarching aim and sub-sections one and two, we’re going to share information about some of the initiatives within the GM Active collective that are aiming to turn ambition into reality.
With the benefit of hindsight, we now know the greatest challenge to our sector was not actually the Covid 19 pandemic – it was actually the energy crisis.
Whilst our losses across Greater Manchester were relatively minimal, nonetheless there were many facilities potentially at risk.
There has to be a better, more secure future for our venues. We know that the technologies exist to move us away from our reliance on fossil fuels. Greener and sustainable solutions can radically reduce our carbon footprint and significantly reduce utility costs too.
A number of provisions have been applied at centres across GM. Here is a selection of some incredibly significant ones (not to hide from the challenge that these are about the carbon footprint and costs associated with our swimming pools):
So, there you have it. Solutions are out there, they just need to be unearthed and put into practice. There’s bound to be more to come. Arguably it’s too early to say whether these solutions are successful in both cost reduction and carbon reduction, but in the coming months the picture will become clearer.
But what it does strongly demonstrate is our commitment not to be held to ransom by fossil fuel costs, and for solutions to be sourced to reduce costs and carbon emissions.
We know that swimming is a hugely subsidised activity, due to the costs of running a pool. But there is another way, the technologies exist for this not to be the case.
This is why we have looked farther afield too, such as the St Sidwell’s Point facility in Exeter, the first leisure facility in the UK to be built to the ultra-energy efficient Passivhaus standard, meaning energy consumption is reduced by 70% when compared with industry best practice standards.
Could Passivhaus be the solution for any potential new facilities within GM?
Whilst solutions exist, the challenge is the capital investment required to make these retrofit changes.
The then-government’s announcement that £63m was being made available to support publicly owned swimming pools and leisure centres as part of a one-year scheme to relieve pressure caused by high fuel bills was welcomed at the time and many boroughs across Greater Manchester benefitted from this, but it did not go far enough.
Likewise, we welcomed the opportunity to host Ofgem to explain and demonstrate why the sector has such significant energy challenges, which you can read about below.
As an ex-swimmer and employee of both the STA and Swim England for many years, I am passionate about doing all we can in protecting community assets.
A recent data collection of school swimming stats for GM has shown the number of children not learning swim to the MINIMUM basic standard of key stage 2 is quite frightening – it’s gone from 1 in 5 to 2 in 5 (according to research by Swim England).
Therefore, we embark on a worrying trend and cycle. Pop up pools in schools are not the solution as this removes ties with the local community assets, the very venues that we want schools, families and children to support.
What we could be facing is a vicious circle and not a positive one. If more pools were to close then less children will have the opportunity to learn to swim (not withstanding that we live on a relatively small island and open water is always close by wherever we are in the UK). Therefore, the total of our potential customers of the future diminishes, thus creating less demand for swimming pools. It’s a worryingly downward cycle.
If, however, we continue to retrofit innovative technologies, and reduce our carbon footprint and costs, then maybe we can see some light at the end of the tunnel.
Yes, it is easy to focus on pools but in reality, this is applicable to almost all sport and recreation facilities.
As we aim to create a universal offer and be at the forefront of the preventative health agenda, we need to commit to Greater Manchester’s 2038 targets and in tandem ensure all our facilities are sustainable community assets able to support health outcomes and much more besides.
The GB success of Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games 2024 show that our facilities are significant in helping athletes of all ages realise dreams and fulfil their potential.
Failure to protect our venues widens our inequality gaps rather than reduces them. I for one believe we have a duty to our children, indeed all future generations, and society as a whole, to protect these vital community assets for all the powerful benefits they can bring.
We lost a significant facility in Ashton Baths back in 2023, for this very reason. Let’s hope we can avoid any more.
Solutions do exist but require capital investment for green and cost reducing solutions. It’s not too much of a stretch to say finding that investment could be a matter of life and death for our sector, and possibly for some of the people we serve.
